XXX Olympics: Just Soccer
by Kelly Greyer
Summary: Jean Grey never thought she would become an Olympian but walking in the Parade of Nations with the rest of her fellow Americans and US Women's Soccer teammates her childhood dream has become a reality.


Of course we all know that the Olympics have started and are in full swing now! I'm extremely excited! My favorite events are gymnastics and obviously soccer. I got this idea though not watching the women take on France but afterwards during the opening ceremony. The idea of Jean being there just crept into my mind and I wrote it. The ladies that I mention are athletes on the women's team and needless to say after reading this you can guess I am in total awe of Hope Solo. So enough of my blabbering, please read and review.

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Jean never really thought she would be here. Of course she would play with the idea as a kid, every young athlete probably did. But it was just a dream to her. A childish fantasy.

Even when she started to train to get here she hadn't fully convinced herself that she could. Quitting the team of mutant heroes to focus on something that was solid and only partially real was a big decision for her that she often felt bad about, because she was turning her back on her friends for something that was selfish and naive. And something that she just knew she would never accomplish.

She was wrong.

Jean didn't think the grin that was plastered on her face could get any bigger as she stood in the crowd of 500 plus athletes. The very best athletes in the United States and hopefully soon to be proven the best athletes in the world. This feeling was blowing her mind. The excitement was coursing through her veins and she felt like she would explode if she didn't do something about it.

Reaching up she adjusted the blue beret that sat atop of her vibrant red hair. She found herself thinking about the reaction to the uniforms from Americans and she had to say that she did agree with them. She felt slightly awkward in the long skirt and the scarf was a bit too much. Although she would probably make a worse dressed Olympians list somewhere, it was simply a minor detail in a childhood dream realized. She felt herself being nudged on the left side by someone and turned to the handheld camera of Sydney Leroux. Jean smiled as Sydney moved the camera close to her face.

"So how does it feel rookie?" Jean laughed and looked into the camera lens.

"Like no words had ever been written in the history of the world." Sydney pulled the camera away and gave Jean a somewhat thoughtful look.

"Hmm. That's a good one, I'm gonna have to steal it for an interview after this." Both girls laughed as Sydney hooked her arm around Jean's elbow and turned her camera on the rest of the crowd. Jean had instantly connected with Sydney the moment they met. They were both forwards on the team and also the youngest members with Sydney being 22 and Jean being freshly 20. Both players stood near the front of the USA Olympians close to the flag bearer. They were all anxiously awaiting their turn to walk out into the stadium during the parade of nations and with each passing second their heartbeats sped up. Jean looked up at the flag that was raised in front of her and slowly it began to move.

It was finally here. The start of the Olympics, the start of what Jean always knew she was meant to do but never really thought she could.

"Here we go!" Sydney squealed in Jean's ear as they began to walk and squeezed her friends arm, which was still hooked together within her own. Jean thought the yells of the crowd were loud when thy were all waiting, but now being out and walking around the stadium in London they became 10x louder. They were cheering for them all together, but also cheering for her. Jean wondered if they would still be cheering if they had known she was a mutant. Or if she would have even be able to be here if she was. Or if Sydney would be standing this close to her, grasping on to her like the most dearest of friends.

She wondered what hatred she would have been met with...she never even played with the thought that maybe she would still be here...maybe she would still be good enough.

"Ahhh!" Jean turned her head to the person that had just practically slammed into her, screaming excitedly and wrapping their arm around her neck and brining Jean in for a quick hug. The girls on the team were probably the friendliest she had ever met.

"Hope!" Sydney turned her camera to the older woman.

"Look at these faces!" Hope said as she grabbed at Sydney's camera. "These are the faces of Olympic gold!"

"Hell yeah!" Jean shouted into the ear with a pump of her fist. Both Sydney and Hope again laughed. Hope was probably one of the best people that Jean had ever met. While her and Jean didn't share the same position, Hope had still taken her under her wing. She gave her pointers on the field and off the field. Giving her advice on how to handle all of the pressures of the new attention that she would be receiving. Jean loved her spirit and her ferociousness and even loved watching her at the parties that the girls brought Jean to.

Jean talked with some of her friends at the institute as well as old team members and they all laughed when she told them the role that Hope had taken. She was after all known for staying in the spotlight a lot of times negatively but Jean shook off their criticism of her teammate.

They hadn't worked with this woman. They hadn't met her. They hadn't spent days with her playing the sport that she was so passionate about. They hadn't looked up to her for years, watching her games and being inspired by her fluidity and grace and cold steel determination. And for Jean to have her hero standing next to her with her arm hanging over her shoulders walking in the parade of nations...no words had ever been written.

Hope pulled the two younger women's attention to a camera that was moving past the crowd of Americans and facing them. They all turned and waved and Jean imagined some commentator making a verbal note about the three of them and wondered what they would be saying.

Soon she would be playing.

For the first time representing her country.

For the first time as an Olympic athlete.

But still, for the millionth time as a soccer player.

Because a soccer field, rather it in London or Westchester New York, was still just a soccer field.

And Jean Grey was just going to play soccer.


End file.
